Who God Created You to Be

One of the most popular questions I get from new believers is, “What is my purpose in God?” 

While this is a great question to ask, many times it comes down to hearing and obeying God.  Many times the purpose that God has for your life will be humbling and it will not be in your comfort zone.  The purpose that He has to for you has been divinely appointed since before your birth.  The biggest issue in today’s society is that we limit our imagination in how to fulfill our calling.  Many people believe being called means they need to work in paid ministry.  This is the call for some but not all.  

I have always had a soft spot in my heart for the prophet Jeremiah. 

He is often called the weeping prophet.  He was given an unenviable task from God.  His job was to preach against Israel and warn them to turn from their idolatry.  If they did not turn, then Babylon would be used as the sword of God.  In the end, Israel did not turn back towards God and the nation was sent into a seventy year exile. 

Jeremiah did not want the job initially.  He told the heavenly Father that he was to young.  There were times during his ministry that he wished he had never been born.  This was a high calling but not one many people would pray to receive.

There are many lessons about our own calling that we can learn from Jeremiah. 

The first is that we need to set aside everything that the world calls “successful”.  As Christians, we are only concerned with working in the Kingdom of God and not the world. 

Israel did not want to listen to what Jeremiah had to say about their idolatry.  At one point they even put him down in a cistern so they would not have to listen to him.  The worldly values of success are in direct opposition to God’s calling on your life.  We are called to be servants, to be humble and to spread the Gospel. 

When I first started in ministry work, one of my jobs was to unstack and stack chairs.  We didn’t have pews and the chairs needed to be set out and put away every Sunday.  Many would not consider this an important job, however, without chairs there is no service.  In order to learn your calling from God, you need to move past the expectations that the world puts on you: ie., success.  

One of the most common phrases in the Bible, is “do not be afraid,” or some variation of that.  The love of God, the grace of God, destroys fear in your life.  The biggest factor that holds people back from fulfilling their calling is that they fear taking the first step. 

God has given you gifts that will be used in the carrying out of your calling.  When we let fear creep into our mind, or doubts, it will directly impact your boldness in walking in your calling.  You cannot go against fear by yourself: you must walk with the Holy Spirit leading your steps.   

Finally, as Christians, you need to embrace the calling that God has put on your life. 

In today’s society we compartmentalize our lives and it cannot be this way when following the Lord.  Our zeal for Jesus must spill out into all aspects of our lives.  The purpose of every Christian life is to give glory to God.  One of the best ways to give that glory is by embracing your calling with your full being. 

The mark of a Christian is not only attending church on Sunday mornings.  The mark of a Christian is a life solely devoted to the King of Kings.  It is a life that points people to Jesus.  That is the ultimate calling in our lives; that that we can be a beacon for people to discover the true path to following the Lord Jesus.